


Stressed out

by DaZeli



Category: Check Please! (Webcomic)
Genre: Cumulative Stress Disorder, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-02-21
Updated: 2016-02-21
Packaged: 2018-05-22 08:48:35
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 5,008
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/6072829
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/DaZeli/pseuds/DaZeli
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Dex thought he could deal with his stress, but he has a lot of preocupation on his plate and he didn't expect University to be so stressful. Nursey won't let him deal with it alone, and in the end, Dex is glad he does.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Stressed out

**Author's Note:**

> Thank you to [sadquebecois](sadquebecois.tumblr.com/) for betaing this!
> 
> Now this fic deals with cumulative stress disorder (at least that's how I translate it from French); now I do not have it personnaly, but I do have a friend who have it pretty badly. Basically, when she cumulate too much stress, her brain shuts down and she faints. I thought this could probably happen to Dex, and so this was born.
> 
> See end notes for disclaimer.

Dex had always worked hard to get what he wanted, and he wasn’t the kind to ask for help. He wanted to be the best at what he did, and he wanted to achieve it by himself. It was stressful, but Dex was used to it. At least he thought he was.

It turned out that university was much more stressful than high school. And Dex, well, he wasn’t good with stress. If he stressed too much, he would start to spiral down into a vicious circle. So far it had only happened once in his life; that was when he learned about stress disorders and did his best to avoid spiraling again.

He had never told anyone about his disorder. He didn’t want anyone to take pity on him, but most of all, he didn’t want anyone to try and help him. He was strong enough to deal with this himself; he didn’t need or want anyone else's help. So he kept everything to himself, cumulating stress as he went along, unable to let everything go for even a moment, making him unable to relax.

So far he had been able to keep himself out of the spiral, but he did come close around finals. Dex didn’t know how he made it through his first year, but he did, so he started his second year thinking that he’d be able to do the same. But this semester his classes were much harder, and everything was much more intense. He got through midterms alright, but when finals came around winter break, he started spiraling pretty bad.

Of course everyone noticed. They could recognize the signs of stress — Ransom had pretty bad anxiety as well. But unlike Ransom, Dex wasn’t always going into a catatonic state — yet. He noticed the worry in Bitty’s eyes and how Chowder would always ask him if there was something going on. Holster had even asked him if he wanted to go to the spa with Ransom, and Nursey told him to chill, which was probably the least helpful thing to say really.

Dex knew he was spiraling, but he didn’t know what to do about it. He thought he did before, but apparently it was beyond him. He didn’t want to ask for help, so he kept it for himself and tried to stop the spiral, but he didn’t seem able to do anything; he couldn’t sleep, couldn’t focus, couldn’t eat without feeling like his body was rejecting it.

What he didn’t know was that his body was perfectly able to end the spiral by itself, or at least try to.

-*-

Nursey had always thought Dex was stressing himself too much for nothing. As much has he thought it was fun to rile him up, he had to admit that Dex’s constant high level of stress was looking pretty unhealthy. Nursey had expected to see Dex in a Ransom-like catatonic state all first year, but when it didn’t happen, Nursey thought that Dex was probably just wound too tight for his own good.

Until their second year started and Dex looked even more stressed than he had been the previous year. And it was getting worse by the week. Nursey didn’t know how Dex made it through midterms without having a panic attack, but when finals rolled around, Nursey was almost a hundred percent sure Dex would crack. When Dex came back to the Haus after his last final, everyone cheered him because he was the last one finishing his finals. Nursey thought that maybe he had been wrong and that Dex was better at dealing with stress than he had thought.

He patted Dex’s back, and when he looked at Dex, one second he was smiling, and the next he wasn’t. Dex was looking straight ahead, and he suddenly became extremely pale, or at least paler than usual. Nursey’s first thought was that he didn’t look alright at all.

“Are you okay?” Chowder asked Dex.

Dex didn’t reply. In a matter of seconds, his eyes rolled upwards and he fell down like a ragdoll. Nursey was barely able to catch him before he hit the tiled floor of the kitchen. As he was asking Dex what the fuck that was, he noticed that Dex was limp in his arms.

Dex had fainted.

A wind of panic spread through the Haus, but Lardo told everyone to remain calm. Nursey laid Dex down and used his sweater to make a pillow for his head. Lardo checked Dex’s breathing, and everything was in order. She said that Dex’s pulse was very high, but it was slowing down, so he would probably be alright.

They waited a few minutes before Dex finally came back to consciousness and slowly opened his eyes. Nursey noted that he looked dead tired and in need of food and sleep.

“Are you okay?” Lardo asked him.

“Y-yeah,” Dex replied.

“Goodness gracious, Dex. You need some rest,” Bitty told him. “I’ll go set up the couch. I’ll give you something to eat, and you’ll take a good nap.”

Nursey helped Dex slowly get up and led him to the living room. Bitty got the new sofa bed out and prepared it with covers and pillows. Dex sat down, and Bitty went to get him something to eat — of course, it was pie. Dex ate in silence, and when he was done, Bitty took his plate away and made him lay down. Nursey had watched from afar, thinking that it wasn’t normal for someone to faint out of the blue like that. He eventually went back to the kitchen with the others.

“He needs to see a doctor,” Ransom said.

“Yeah, this isn’t normal or healthy,” Holster added.

“Is there a medical condition we should know about?” Bitty asked Lardo.

“I don't know, maybe we could ask the coaches, but I don’t think they know more than us,” she replied.

“Alright, I’m going to the student clinic with him tomorrow,” Nursey said, “That way I’ll find out, and I’ll tell you anything they tell us.”

Even he didn’t want to admit it, Nursey was worried for Dex. Since the end of their freshman year, they had been on better terms. They were friends, sort of. They gravitated toward each other more than anything, but still, Nursey was ready to consider themselves friends, Chowder always had considered them like so. He just didn’t know if Dex would’ve considered them that way, too.

In any case, he was going to get Dex checked out whether Dex wanted it or not.

A few hours later, he went to wake up Dex from his nap. When he walked into the living room, he looked at Dex. For a brief second he thought that Dex, the 6’2” defenseman, was adorable, all curled up in his burrito blanket. Nursey didn’t really want to wake him up, but he had to; the sofa bed wasn’t that comfortable, and Dex needed to be there for dinner otherwise Bitty would end Nursey.

He sat down at the edge of the bed and started petting Dex’s hair. It was the only way he found that wouldn’t make him feel bad for waking Dex up. His hair was soft and thin, and Nursey would’ve been lying if he said it wasn’t fun to play with. He also would never admit how much he loved the shade of red it was; bright and bold, a good reflection of Dex's personnality. When Dex opened his eyes, Nursey stopped his ministrations and smiled.

“Hey, it’s time for dinner. After that I’ll bring you back to the dorm,” Nursey said.

“Fine,” Dex groaned as he slowly got up from the bed, stretching out.

They went to the kitchen where Bitty had made tons of food. Dex ate his whole plate, and once they were done, they said goodnight and went back to the dorms. Nursey escorted Dex all the way back to his room to make sure he was alright, also taking the chance to tell him they were going to the clinic the next day.

“I’m bringing you to the student clinic tomorrow, so get some sleep alright?” he asked him.

“I don’t need to get checked. I know what the problem is, it just got out of hand —” Dex said.

Nursey didn’t fail to notice the way Dex had tensed up almost immediately.

“Dex, you fainted. That isn’t normal. I’m bringing you to the clinic whether you like it or not,” Nursey told him.

“I can go there on my own,” Dex retorted.

“I know, but then there’s no guarantee that you’ll actually go. So I’m coming with you to make sure you do go get checked,” Nursey said.

Dex grumbled something before closing his door on Nursey, who went back to his dorm. He couldn’t help but feel that there was something Dex wasn’t telling them. Dex did say he knew what the problem was, but if he knew, then why didn’t he ask for help when things got out of hand? Nursey couldn’t wrap his mind around it and decided to go to bed.

-*-

The next day, Dex woke up to Nursey banging on his door. He got up and dressed before exiting the dorm. Dex was nervous. The previous day, he had lost control and fainted. It wasn’t something he was used to, and now he had to go to the clinic with Nursey.

Dex wondered why Nursey even volunteered to bring him there in the first place. Did Nursey actually care about him? He had always thought that Nursey couldn’t care less about him or his problems because he always told him to chill. He blushed at the thought that it was Nursey who caught him when he fainted and lent him his sweater. He remembered waking up surrounded by the smell of Nursey. It had made him feel a little better, especially since he had had a pretty big headache, hence why he slept most of the afternoon on the sofa bed. He also remembered Nursey waking him up by playing with his hair and how calming it had felt… Dex blushed dark red as they were walking, and of course Nursey noticed.

“Are you alright?” Nursey asked him.

“Yeah, everything’s fine,” Dex replied.

They made it to the clinic, and Dex signed up. They sat in the plastic chairs and waited. When Dex was called, he didn’t expect Nursey to follow him, but he did. It only made Dex more nervous; Nursey would probably find out about his disorder, and Dex didn’t want that. They entered the room, and Dex greeted the doctor and sat down at the examination table. Nursey explained what happened the day before. The doctor checked Dex’s blood pressure and heart rate, and everything was in order. He then looked in Dex’s record and found what Dex had hoped he wouldn’t.

“Ah, it seems you have a diagnosed stress disorder,” the doctor said.

“It’s very likely that the two are related. Judging by the circumstance, I’m ready to say that you have a cumulative stress disorder. What happens is if you accumulate too much stress, your brain will react by shutting down to relieve it. You don’t have a history of fainting, so a small dose should do,” the doctor finished, writing something down on a note.

Dex glanced at Nursey, who was frowning. Shit, he probably wasn’t pleased that Dex had never told him about it.

The doctor gave Dex a prescription, and they left. Nursey grabbed Dex’s arms and dragged him to the closest drugstore so he could buy his medicine. He hadn’t said a word, and he was still frowning. Once Dex got his medication, they made their way back to the Haus. As they were walking, Nursey finally said something.

“Why didn’t you tell me you had a stress disorder?” Nursey asked.

“I never told anyone because I don’t want anyone to try to help me or pitying me. I can deal with it by myself, thanks,” Dex replied sharply.

“If you can deal with it so well, why the fuck did you faint yesterday!? God fucking dammit Dex I’m your friend! It’s literally my job to help you!” Nursey told him.

“I never asked for your help, or anyone’s for that matter. If you could leave me alone with that, that’d be great,” Dex said, angry.

“Fine! You self-destructive asshole, go ahead and be stubborn as always. So much for trying to be a good friend,” Nursey grunted.

Dex became red with anger and threw the bottle of pills at Nursey before turning around and going back to his dorm.

-*-

Nursey caught the bottle and shit, that was Dex’s prescription, but Dex was already too far ahead to catch up with him. So Nursey went back to the Haus. He entered the kitchen and sat at the table, his face resting in his hand. The other hand held the bottle of pills. Everyone was looking at him, probably wondering what was up.

“You went to the clinic?” Bitty asked.

“Yeah. It turns out Dex has a stress disorder that causes him to faint if he accumulates too much stress. He didn’t tell us because he doesn’t want help, but he clearly needs it. I don’t know what to do,” Nursey admitted.

“Well, as the team manager, I’ll go talk to him. Is that his prescription?” Lardo asked.

“Yeah, he threw them at me when he got angry earlier. You should probably give them back to him,” Nursey said, giving the bottle to Lardo.

Nursey ate some pie before going to pack his things for the break. He didn’t see Dex again before winter break.

-*-

Once they returned from break, Nursey noticed that Dex looked much better. Dex had probably gotten some time to unwind and relax. But after a few weeks, it felt like they were back at square one; Dex looked stressed as ever, and Nursey wondered if he was even taking his pills.

Nursey tried not to care too much about Dex, but he couldn’t help but notice all the little things that were wrong: like the bags under his eyes or his lack of focus. At that point, Nursey was pretty sure Dex wasn’t taking his medicine, and Nursey could literally see him spiral into his infinite circle of stress.

Eventually, Dex fainted again.

They were at the Haus again, but this time Dex almost fell down the stairs. Luckily Nursey, who was there because he had noticed that Dex didn’t look well, caught him and laid him down at the top of the stairs. When everyone came to check, they found Nursey taking care of a fainted Dex.

When Dex came back to his senses, he slowly got up and made his way to the bathroom, before kneeling in front of the toilet and vomiting. Nursey noticed him shivering, so he lent him his sweater and rubbed his back until he was done. Nursey had look up a list of things that a stress disorder could cause and he remembered vomiting being one of them, so he didn’t worry more than he already was.

When Dex was done emptying his stomach, Nursey helped him get up. He zipped up the sweater since Dex was still shivering. Nursey passed an arm around Dex’s shoulders and brought him back downstairs. Lardo was already on her way to get Dex’s pills, and Bitty had set up the couch. Chowder told them he was willing to lend Dex his bed, but Nursey refused. He laid Dex down on the sofa bed and sat next to him, rubbing lazy circles on the ginger’s back.

Lardo came back with the pills, and they quickly gave a dose to Dex. Of course, they noticed it was the first time the bottle had been opened. Nursey knew Dex wasn’t taking his pills. Dex was too stubborn to even admit he needed help, so taking pills was pretty much a big nope.

When he came back from his thoughts, Nursey noticed that he was was mindlessly playing with Dex’s hair and that Dex had fallen asleep. Nursey observed him; Dex looked relaxed and comfortable, and his face was adorable. Nursey loved Dex’s freckles and red hair. He also loved his big bright amber eyes and soft hands and lips… Why was he thinking about Dex lips of all things? This wasn’t the time for that. Plus he didn’t know if Dex’s lips were soft for real, or if they just looked soft.

Nursey shook the thoughts from his head and left to go to the kitchen to grab something to eat. Everyone was silent, thinking about what to do with Dex. Nursey didn’t say anything.

That night he decided to sleep on the sofa bed with Dex. When he went back to the living room, Dex was curled up in the blankets with Nursey’s sweater still on. Nursey lay down next to him, making sure to leave some space between them. He fell asleep listening to Dex’s even breathing, only to wake up in the middle of the night with Dex curled up against him. Nursey had the reflex to wrap an arm around him and burry his nose in Dex’s hair before falling asleep again.

-*-

When Dex got up from the floor at the top of the stairs, he felt incredibly sick. He felt like the world was spinning, so he made his way to the bathroom and vomited in the toilet. He was shaking and covered in cold sweat, but then Nursey lent him his sweater, probably thinking he was cold. He was, but not that bad.

When he was done vomiting, Nursey zipped the sweater and helped him get back downstairs to lay down on the sofa bed. The way Nursey was rubbing circles on his back was soothing. Once he had taken his pills, he fell asleep to Nursey playing with his hair. He was still in Nursey’s sweater, and he was surrounded by his smell. Nursey had a nice and comforting smell, so he curled up under the covers and buried his nose in the sweater.

Dex woke up in the middle of the night. He turned around and saw Nursey sleeping next to him. Dex suddenly had the urge to cuddle up to him. A few minute later, he felt Nursey holding him close and burying his nose in his hair. It was surprisingly comforting and comfortable.

The next morning, Dex woke up and Nursey was gone. Dex got up and went to the kitchen. He was greeted by Nursey, Bitty and Lardo. Dex sat down, Bitty gave him some pancakes, and Nursey gave him his pills and frowned.

“I’ll make sure you take them from now on. I don’t want you to faint during practice,” Nursey told him.

The way Nursey casually passed a hand through Dex’s hair and down his neck made Dex blush. It felt so nice when Nursey touched him like that. He took his pills and ate. He didn’t really talk — he wasn’t really in the mood for that. When he was done, he went back to his dorm.

Then he realised he still had Nursey’s sweater on. It was a size too big for him, Nursey was more muscular so it was to be expected, but even so, Dex felt comfortable with the slightly oversized sweater on him. He decided to keep it for a while. Nursey probably wouldn’t mind. Dex borrowed things from him all the time; mostly because Dex always forgot to do his laundry, but also because Dex liked Nursey’s clothes, not that he would ever admit it.

He kept the sweater for a week before giving it back.

-*-

After reading week, Nursey always made sure Dex was taking his pills. For some reason, Dex didn’t mind it that much. Having Nursey caring about him made him warm and fuzzy inside, and God knew that Nursey actually cared a lot more than Dex had thought; Nursey was hanging out with him a lot more, and he would almost aggressively make Dex relax with him.

At first Dex pushed him away, because he didn’t need all this attention; he especially did not need Nursey to come sleep in his room to make sure Dex slept or a music playlist of Bob Marley songs to help him relax. But eventually, Dex caved in and let Nursey take care of him, because it wasn’t so bad. Having Nursey caring for him so much made him happy, and it felt nice.

Dex’s favorite thing was when Nursey made him cuddle on the couch. At first it was awkward, but Dex would’ve been lying if he said he didn’t like the soothing sound of Nursey’s heartbeat or the way he played with his hair or the rare occasions when Nursey kissed the top of his head. Dex didn’t really know why it made him so happy when Nursey decided to cuddle. He had never felt like that towards someone before and really, it was confusing.

As long as Nursey would cuddle with him, he was fine.

Except that over the next few weeks, things happened outside of the cuddling sessions; Nursey would often put his hand on the back of his neck and rub his thumb up and down to calm him down. He would kiss his temple every so often and just… touch him in many more ways. Dex loved it. All these little attentions Nursey was paying him made him feel content, and they helped chase the stress away. They never talked about it, but Dex felt like he didn’t need to.

One day on a roadie, Dex was very stressed out about an essay he had to hand in the day after and well, Nursey had decided to sleep in the same bed that night. They woke up spooning, but they didn’t talk about it either. But just because Dex was oblivious didn’t mean the others were. Nobody said anything, but they all thought Dex and Nursey were a couple. Of course, it was Chowder who brought it up to Dex.

“Hey, Dex! Do you and Nursey want to go on a double date with me and Farmer?” Chowder asked.

“W-what?” Dex asked back.

“Come on! It’ll be fun! Plus Farmer thinks you and Nursey are a great couple!” Chowder said.

Dex blushed the darkest shade of red.

“But we’re not dating,” Dex told him.

“But- Oh… OH, it’s okay! You don’t have to be out yet, don’t worry! I won’t tell anyone!”

“What? No, Chowder, I mean it. Me and Nursey are not a couple. Nursey’s just helping me relieve my anxiety...”

“Oh, my God! I’m so sorry, I just assumed and— Oh, I’m so sorry,” Chowder told him.

“It’s okay, Chowder,” Dex replied.

And it was okay. Dex didn’t mind the image of him and Nursey as a couple. Nursey was so sweet and caring, and Dex liked to be with him. But he thought that Nursey wouldn’t feel the same — there was no way he could. So Dex lived on small hopes from their cuddles and Nursey’s occasional kiss.

-*-

When he woke up that morning with Dex still curled up against him, Nursey felt his heart flutter. Dex was absolutely adorable like that, and Nursey felt like it was his job to protect him. He took a moment to enjoy the feeling of Dex’s body pressing close to his before getting up and going to the kitchen, where Bitty was making breakfast. Nursey sat down and ate some pancakes before Lardo joined them.

When Dex woke up and joined them, Nursey felt his face heat up; Dex was still wearing his sweater, which was a little too big for him to fit correctly, and Nursey thought he looked cute as hell. When Dex sat down, Bitty served him, and Nursey remembered the pills. He got up, took the bottle, and gave a dose to Dex. He saw Dex frown at the pills, but convinced him to take them, and he took the chance to pass a hand through the ginger’s hair and rest his hand on the back of his neck.

He saw Dex blush, but he didn’t shrug him off, so Nursey assumed it was okay. It was interesting how Dex reacted to certain types of affection.

When he tried a few weeks later to take care of Dex, he pushed Nursey away, but Nursey insisted and eventually, Dex let him do his thing. That’s when Nursey noticed how much affection calmed Dex down. Whenever Nursey decided to make Dex cuddle, he noticed how much Dex relaxed when he caressed his hair or the back of his neck. Nursey was surprised. He had been sure Dex wouldn’t be the kind to like affection, but apparently he had been wrong, because Dex turned out to be a very affectionate person.

And Nursey thought it was the most adorable thing ever.

One day, when they were cuddling, Nursey got the urge to kiss him, so he kissed the top of Dex’s head and when Dex only cuddled closer, he felt his heart melt. From then on, Nursey took the liberty of being more affectionate toward Dex outside their cuddling sessions. Dex would blush, but he never pushed Nursey away.

On the day when they woke up spooning, Nursey felt that this was what he wanted with Dex. But he thought it was impossible, because even if Dex let him show some affection and sleep in his bed, that didn’t mean that Dex was into him. They were on good terms now, and Nursey didn’t want to screw it up. So he didn’t say anything and took everything he could.

Until one day, as they were cuddling, Dex was half asleep on him, and Nursey was playing with his red hair when, all of a sudden, Dex said something that Nursey couldn’t forget.

“I love you,” Dex said to him before yawning.

“I love you, too,” Nursey replied, smiling.

Then in a matter of seconds, Dex was wide awake and looking at him with huge eyes, as if Nursey said something impossible.

“Wait, what? I —” Dex started.

But Nursey cut him off by gently pressing their lips together. Dex closed his eyes and responded to the kiss. It was a short, chaste kiss, but enough to sort everything out in the feeling department. When they broke away, Dex was blushing bright red.

“That explains a lot…” he said.

“Like what?” Nursey asked.

“Well, the caring, the cuddles, the kisses. Y’know… I thought you were only doing this because you wanted to help me relax,” Dex told him.

“So did I, to be honest, but I quickly learned that you are the most adorable person alive when you’re relaxed,” he smirked.

“Well, that explains why Chowder thought we were a couple. He asked me if we wanted to go on a double date with him and Farmer,” Dex said.

“He did? Oh, my God,” Nursey laughed.

“I think everyone does. I mean, you’ve been acting pretty couple-y with me, and I didn’t push you away, so…”

“True that. Does that mean you want us to be a couple?” Nursey asked.

“Yeah… If you want to, I’d like that,” Dex replied, blushing.

“Nice. I now declare us boyfriends,” Nursey smiled before going to kiss him again.

The kiss lasted much longer this time around, and they quickly turned it into a makeout session. Nursey could confirm that Dex’s lips were indeed very soft and that his hair was twice as fun to play with when they were making out. They were interrupted by Chowder, who cleared his throat as he entered the room.

“Sorry. Didn’t see you there C,” Nursey said.

“It’s okay! I’m glad you guys got it figured out. But now that you are a thing, how about that double date?” Chowder asked.

Dex laughed and accepted the offer. Nursey chuckled, and they returned to their cuddling position.

-*-

From then on, they weren’t exactly out to everyone, but nothing changed much. Except that there was more kissing and hand holding. They did receive congratulations, and they got caught making out at the Haus and on the bus. The bus had been awkward so they agreed to never do it there again, even if it was tempting. They also always slept in the same bed on roadies, even if they technically shouldn’t have.

Nursey quickly learned how handsy Dex could be; Dex would constantly be in his space, hugging, cuddling or kissing, asking to be loved back. It almost felt like Dex had bottled up all of his love and affection for years and that he was letting it all out. Nursey didn’t mind; he actually loved it when Dex was affectionate. Dex did look a lot less stressed out when they were together, and that was a good thing. He looked more relaxed and happier overall, and seeing Dex so happy to be with him gave him butterflies in his stomach.

Nursey also found lots of new ways to help Dex release stress; they ranged from a shared hot bath to rough sex. Somehow, he always knew which one Dex needed, because Dex was surprisingly easy to read once he opened up.

On his side, Dex had never felt calmer than when he was with Nursey. He actually liked being taken care of from time to time. Nursey turned out to be living up to his name, because he cared for Dex in all the right ways, and it made Dex feel so good. Relaxing with Nursey really was the best part of any day.

Dex never fainted once they started dating. And years later, when they finally graduated, Dex thought that Nursey was the only reason he had survived University. When they moved in together, Dex stopped taking his prescription, and even if Nursey was a little worried at first, Dex assured him that he really felt like he didn’t need them anymore.

He didn’t have to take them ever again.

**Author's Note:**

> DISCLAIMER: You should take any medication as prescribed. Relationships aren't a substitute for medical treatment, this is obviously just an happily ever after.


End file.
